Thursday, April 4, 2013

What I said was.....


First of all, as usual thanks to all of you for your very insightful comments. That's why I post stuff, to get feedback and check in with other opinions. There is so much information posted online, some good, some misinformation, some accurate, some not so much, some is propaganda by companies with billions of dollars at stake with politicians in their pockets, some by scientists, environmentalists, activists...... SO much! Who knows what to believe. I try to read all sides, ask questions and form some sort of educated guess. I really don't know what to believe anymore. When there is corporate interest involved, money rules and lies are told. For every website I found saying that smart meters are harmful, I found that many saying they are ok. The World Health Organization has classified them as a possible carcinogen, how many years were cigarettes said to be safe and even beneficial and just a possible carcinogen?

Anyway, my whole point yesterday was this:
Regardless of whether or not smart meters are safe or harmful, What bothers me is the bee-otch at Progress Energy getting all snippy with me and telling me "I have no choice". Why don't I have a choice?

I found the Energy Policy Act of 2005, signed by George Bush and it "requires all public utility companies to OFFER net metering ON REQUEST to their customers." I was NOT offered a meter nor did I request one. SO, maybe I DO have a choice.

I CHOOSE to not use a cell phone (except for emergencies, it stays in my car), I CHOOSE to not have a microwave oven, don't need it, I spend hours in the grocery store reading labels so I consume less chemicals, additives and GMO foods. I feel like there is an onslaught of harmful agents coming at me every day that I have to educate myself about. It didn't used to be this way, folks.


All I know is most people don't stand in front of their microwave 24/7 and with the exception of a few, most don't have their cell phone to their ear 24/7, which are two of the items that smart meters are being compared. However, the smart meter is emitting rf waves every 6-8 seconds around the clock into my home.  Also, I spoke to my home owner's insurance agent, my meter does not have a UL sticker, not UL approved. My policy will cover me if this thing catches on fire and burns my house down, which some have done. Some insurance companies will not not cover your loss, you should check. My agent said they would protect me, but go after the energy company for the loss.  Soooo, I'm still gathering information, trying to decide if it's ok to live with this thing or fight the big fight with Goliath.......

Now, as to the question Kevin had about the Monsanto Protection Act, which is what the rider 735 on the bill HR 933 is being dubbed. I am by no means an expert on this topic and I read so much about this last night, I though my head would explode. I found the rider and read it, and I cannot for the life of me figure out how anyone in Congress understood what they were reading, the language is so twisted......... from what I have gathered it is my understanding that Senator Roy Blunt, BFF with Monsanto apparently wrote the language of the bill with the assistance of Monsanto, imagine that!?!?!?!?! and got all sneaky, slipping it in to a much larger and not even really related piece of legislation. Again, I am no expert and I'm just assimilating information from other news websites......

Senator Mikulski, who has a strong record of food safety concerns, issued a statement apologizing for signing the bill, saying she did not support it. So, WHY did she vote for it? How many others voted for it, not knowing what they voted on? How many bills are passing through without our representatives understanding what they are signing? There is so much going on in our government that affects our lives, without our knowledge, it makes me want to live in a cave and never come out again.

In summary for those that started talking about radon and moving my bedroom and mold, thank you for that, all valid points and well taken

However, What I Said Was:
1. I want to have a CHOICE when something that may cause potential harm to me is installed on the home I own
2. It annoys me that our government representatives are passing riders on bills that are slipped in with language no one even understands, bills that protect large corporations like Monsanto, a monster of a corporation that is supplying us with genetically modified seeds. We have little choice in the matter of GMO's, they are being hidden in our foods, I WANT A CHOICE!!!!!!  

Sooooooooooo.............. enough with all this. If this peaks your curiosity, spend some time looking around online at all the information/misinformation and decide for yourself. I can only do so much to protect myself from all of this and in the end I will die anyway, so really what IS the point?
I made some pears and vases yesterday, what IS the point........  LOL.

am I annoying you with this? I just needed to vent, I'm a Libra, injustice sends me over the moon :)




9 comments:

oldgreymare said...

I love that you shout "awareness" to us! We all should be. I am vigilant about some issues and negligent in others. Sometimes I fight, sometimes I retreat..I don't like that about myself..I'm a work in progress.

Three things I could totally get behind.

Constitutional changes that limit Senate terms to 8 years.

Banning of all lobbyists from the capital and all elected officials must register/report any contact with any lobbyist.

Riders to any bill must be banned.
One issue one vote
Just imagine how much crap we could stop....

Tracey Broome said...

YES!!!!! I am right there with you
I also go through advance and retreat, it takes so much energy, but this battle is worth it, don't tell me I have no choice, when in fact the federal law says that i DO.

Amy said...

well, I think you need to be applauded for researching like you have and making an informed decision that is best for you. I laughed about the choice thing; on the other hand, it is so frustrating to even think that a homeowner doesn't have a choice in such. sure, there should be options. it's disheartening to say the least that there isn't such. it's just disappointing. this monsanto thing is all the above too- disappointing, frustrating, and well, embarrassing for our country to say the least. plus I at least hope that others are respecting your decisions and maybe be open to learning from you?- since when did we all have to agree on things anyway?
that's all I'll say.......

Tracey Broome said...

Well said Amy, I'm making progress, excuse the pun! With Progress Energy... Baby steps.... And yes I think there is a lot for our country to be embarrassed about...... Much to be proud of as well, good and bad, ying and yang :)

Amy said...

Laughed at the 'progress' report! :)
Peace!

Schnee said...

I've heard on a listserv that Pepco has been rolling these out these smart meters in MD, which can be opted out of....but some people have gotten them not realizing the potential issues and have successfully had them removed and replaced with the old style ones. They may have paid a fee for the removal but were successful in getting them removed. I would suggest further calls...it may depend on who you speak with at your power company....Good Luck Tracey.

Lori Buff said...

It scares the crap out of me that someone would sign a bill not knowing what they are signing, especially when it relates to our health and safety. If she's truly sorry she she prove it by fighting to repeal it.

Tracey Broome said...

Hi schnee, thanks! I'm working on it.....
Lori, my point exactly! Who knows what else those slippery ones will try to sneak past the good ones. We need some super heros!

Ally said...

Im from the uk and there seems to be a growing movement of people who are telling us to say NO to these meters. It appears that there are other concerns other than just the health issues, privacy was also mentioned, talk about big brother!
Ally x